Peshawar: In the 1988 General Elections, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) recorded a voter turnout of 37.1% for its Provincial Assembly, with 2.21 million votes cast out of 5.96 million registered voters. The province, historically marked by conflict and instability in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region, faced challenges such as a significant gender gap in voter registration, geographic hurdles, and security threats, contributing to its lower-than-average turnout.

According to Free and Fair Election Network, KP's electorate was predominantly male, with 3.38 million male voters (56.8%) and 2.57 million female voters (43.2%), highlighting a gender gap of 13.6%. This gap underscores ongoing structural barriers to women's civic participation in the province. Rejected ballots totaled 37,331, accounting for 1.7% of the votes, a rate typically higher than other provinces such as Punjab and Sindh, potentially due to lower literacy rates and administrative challenges.

The province's voter turnout has consistently lagged behind national averages, with its highest recorded Assembly turnout in 1970 at 47.8% and the lowest in 1997 at 24%. The challenges faced by voters in KP, including its mountainous terrain and limited infrastructure, continue to affect electoral participation. Over the years, KP's electorate has grown significantly, particularly after the merger of former FATA constituencies, indicating evolving demographic and political landscapes in the region.